Friday Random Links & Thoughts - 8/14/2020

Random stuff for Friday.

- I have at least one of the demons from the Daemon Derby. I won't say if it is pictured, or if it's one mentioned but not pictured.

- Wandering Monsters have come up a couple of times in interesting posts:

Wandering Monsters For the First Time over at Lich Van Winkle
The Problem with Random Encounters over at Monsters & Manuals

- Monsters & Manuals has a nice coin generator. I'm not sure why scorched coins are worth less - if the value is symbolic, it's still the symbol that matters; if it's based on metal value, some carbon on the outside isn't going to reduce that value.

But I do like the descriptions of the coins. That's handy - you don't want every coin to be ruler front, symbol of the kingdom on the back. Ancient people weren't so limited, so why should you be?

I don't do a lot of "collectible" coins in my campaigns, though. Ultimately, it's color, and the weight of coin and the purity (assumed to be on average, the same) that determine value. So, ultimately, a pound of gold coins is worth a pound of gold coins. I do like coinage color, though, to liven up a game and give some background depth to your setting.

- James Maliszewski is blogging again. At least, he blogged. Very exciting, even if I won't buy that game he's talking about.

- Twilight:2000 Kickstarter - there is a Kickstarter for a new edition of T2K. I'd probably just run it with GURPS, myself, but it's nice to see someone keeping the flame of nuclear annihilation alive. I heard someone say, why aren't we more scared of nuclear war now than in the 80s? I don't really know, as proliferation is still a big issue and more and more non-state actors with aims they'd see aided by mass destruction exist, ala Gamma World. But in the 80s, it really felt like it was coming, and both sides rattled sabres. And had things like Able Archer happen (read it, it's chilling.) That might be it.

- The WOTC D&D Survey 2020 is up, if you'd like your voice heard on D&D.

- Has anyone ever written a good guide on how to play spy games? There was an article in Dragon, but that's about all I can think of.

How about about one on how to run gangster-era games, either as gangsters or cops?

I'm curious, and I'd like to read them if they exist. I'm not planning a game of either genre, but I've been thinking about how I don't really have a good handle on how to run such games.